(T)MMR: The Heirarchy of Favorite Sports

So, finally, after a few weeks off, I'm back to the MMRing (although a day late!). And with one sports season winding down, and two more starting up again, I felt it was as good a time as any to analyze which sport was my favorite sport, why, and if it's always been that way.

Baseball:

Baseball is America's Pasttime, although not America's favorite sport anymore. I started playing baseball when I was 6 years old, and I was hooked. I played for 10 years or so, and then the game passed me by. But I've always been a fan of the game. The strategy, the intricacies, the long ball! It's just such a beautiful sport. But, it can be a bit slow and boring, I will admit that. Baseball has a tendency to drag on...especially when watching the A's abysmal offense. However, baseball was my favorite sport growing up...and even into high school. Some of the best baseball games I went to were in 2006...especially the ALDS clinching game against the Twins! So awesome. Baseball is one of the harder sports to play...it's a sport where if you are a successful hitter 33% of the time, you are considered an All-Star. The season is long, but the postseason is very tense and full of action. Nothing better than baseball in October!

Football:

Football (the American kind...we'll get to the world's football later) is America's favorite sport. Over the last 20 years or so, the NFL has just skyrocketed in popularity. There are many reasons behind this. First, you can bet on it. With only one set of games a week, it's much easier to bet on. Second, the fantasy sports world blew up around football. Finally, football is a sport kids can grow up playing in their back yards. It only takes 4 people to have a two on two game. 8 kids, and you're really cooking. Much easier to set up a football game than a baseball game. Football also has quick plays, plenty of stoppages, and there's a physical element to it that Americans love. Also, football is scarce enough to keep people's attention for the entire season. At best, you get 19 games, and usually only 16 games, to watch your favorite team every season. Every game is treasured. I love football season, and I love the Niners. Can't wait for the season to begin.

Hockey:

Hockey is underrated in America, and adored in Canada. Usually, when Canada likes something, I use that as grounds to shun it, but man, they got it right with hockey. Hockey is a beautiful sport that perfectly combines skill, stamina, speed, brute strength, and finesse. Where else can you watch a game that has an offensive highlight that makes your jaw drop followed by a fight where the players do not get kicked out of the game? It's amazing! And with an average of 25-40 shots on goal, and goalies that, on average, save around 90% of those shots, there are plentiful scoring chances, but games tend to stay close! I love hockey, and since moving back to San Jose and getting a job that pays me real, actual money, I've been going to loads of games. The in arena atmosphere is second to none, games are exciting, and its all done on ice, which adds that layer of "man, I couldn't do that" to the sport! Just amazing!

Other Sports:

Basketball is the glaring omission from my list. It is very popular in the U.S. and around the world, but for me, it's just ok. I like the Lakers, and I enjoy the NCAA Tournament, but for the most part, basketball falls flat with me. The NBA has become a 1 on 5 league. Everyone on offense backs off, and watches the superstar juke, drive, and score. Then on the other end, the same thing happens. The superstar posts up, dribbles, and score. Rinse, repeat 100 times, ballgame. Yawn.

Golf is the only sport I'm currently playing...poorly. I'm not very good. But it's fun at times, nonetheless. Golf has become increasingly popular over the years in the U.S., thanks in no small part to Tiger Woods. He has transcended the game, become an icon the world over. He has made golf not just an old person's game anymore, but a sport kids now want to learn and play. I mean, look at it this way...20 years ago, would anyone have cared that a golfer cheated on his wife with 18 women? Probably not. Now, it's national news for a month! Golf has grown in popularity substantially. I watch it, enjoy it, and play it. It's a good sport, but not in my top 3.

Soccer is the world's sport, but here in America isn't nearly as popular. Likewise with me, while the sport is growing on me, and I can appreciate it for what it is, it's still not among my favorites all the time. I actually really enjoy international soccer. The World Cup was fun. I'll watch the international friendlies. The international game is so charged with nationalistic pride that it's hard not to get sucked in. But club soccer, and especially the MLS, still falls flat with me. The game can be really, really boring. Very few scoring chances, the ball getting booted back and forth, and the diving...oh the diving. The stupid, immature games soccer players play on the pitch to waste time and/or draw penalties...it really detracts from the game as a whole. Still, it is growing on me. I don't hate soccer as much as I used to.

Boxing is one of the oldest sports in the world. It is also one of the more controversial. Hand to hand combat, for sport, can be frowned upon, and it is strictly regulated. We've all seen the after affects of boxing watching Muhammad Ali grow old. It can be a brutal sport. But it is also an entertaining one. The speed, endurance, and training that is necessary to become an elite boxer is incredible. Two men lay everything they have on the line every time they go out and fight. They pound into one another in 3 mintue sputs. They take a licking and get back up for more punishment. Nothing can make you say WHOA faster than a quick, efficient knock out. Boxing has alwyas been very entertaining to me...as has been this next up and coming sport.

Mixed Martial Arts has sprung up while boxing has been fading. MMA combines boxing, wrestling, karate, ju jit su, muay thai, and all forms of combat into one arena. A champion of MMA is truly a master of fighting. MMA has had some brutal beginnings, and had trouble getting sanctioned because at first it really was no holds barred. It was brutal. Now it is regulated much more closely, and is a real exhibition of strength and stamina. A brutal knockout can be just as entertaining as a perfectly executed submission hold. The training that goes into being a great MMA competitor is unreal, and only few become good enough to be called champion. Watch Brock Lesnar fight, and try and tell me the speed and agility of this 260 lb. behemoth isn't impressive! MMA is fast becoming one of the most popular sports in America, and is one of my favorites.

Tennis is another decently popular sport in the U.S. and the World, but one that falls flat with me. I'll watch the semis and finals of Grand Slam events, and there are definately some impressive feats of stamina and skill involved. But mostly, its the same 3 or 4 people winning all the time, and its the same thing over and over again. The ball goes back and forth and back and forth and oh, into the net. Serve, rinse, repeat. Ugh. I have a hard time caring about Tennis.

Olympic Sports I'm going to lump all together, because, really, I only care about them once every 4 years. The Winter Olympics are my favorite. I love the curling, the ski jumping, the bobsledding, the luge and skeleton, and the speed skating. It's all very interesting to me. But I don't watch them other than in the Olympics, then I forget about them. In the summer, I enjoy the sprinting and the swimming, but not as much as I enjoy the winter sports. But, yeah, I only care about them once every four years, so its hard to get too worked up over them in the long run.

X Games Sports, or Extreme Sports, are becoming much more popular. The things kids can do with skateboards, BMX Bikes, dirt bikes, rally cars, snowboards, snowmobiles, etc. is just unreal. It's always a treat to watch. I enjoy it quite a bit, but don't usually seek it out. I'll just catch it when surfing through the channels. Still, the emergence of snowboarding as an olympic sport has given some legitimacy to the X Games and extreme sports in general, and they're on their way up in America.

Conclusions:

Baseball was my favorite sport growing up, and even through high school. Hockey has supplanted it as my favorite sport now, though. Football is also amazing, and I look forward to football season every year. After that, there is a large drop between those three and the rest of the sports I somewhat care about. Here's the list of my favorite sports, from favorite to least favorite:

1. Ice Hockey
2. Baseball
3. American Football

4. Boxing
5. Mixed Martial Arts
6. Golf
7. Basketball
8. Soccer (Football)
9. Olympic Sports
10. X Games Sports (Extreme Sports)